


Stronger Than Blood

by leiasky



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:40:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27578624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leiasky/pseuds/leiasky
Summary: What if 'Dad' hadn't shown up to stop his children's celestial fistfight in 5x08?
Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 144
Kudos: 373





	1. Time to Go Home

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't been able to find a beta so all mistakes, misinterpretations and misunderstandings of canon are all mine. 
> 
> If I made any huge mistakes, please let me know and I'll do my best to correct them.
> 
> If anyone with experience in beta reading would be interested in taking a look at the last three chapters to make sure it all - fits, please let me know.

**Chapter 1: “Time to go Home”**

Chloe’s eyelashes tapped out a rapid staccato against her rosy cheeks as her lips pursed in confused frustration. Where Lucifer had stood a mere second ago bathed in a charged atmosphere of flustered reticence, now he was gone.

Trembling fingers swiped angrily at her watery eyes and she swallowed thickly against the long-nailed talons of irrational fear that clutched at her heart.

Before she had a chance to spiral into despair over being abandoned by the man she loved, again, when confronted with an emotional conundrum completely out of his depth of understanding or experience, muffled commotion echoed through the closed evidence room door.

With a huff of overwhelmed annoyance, she yanked open the door with a little more force than was necessary. Her mouth fell open and she stared in awed fascination as a celestial fistfight between Lucifer, Michael, Amenadiel and – Maze? unfolded with perfectly executed precision in front of her.

Her heart hammered in her throat as she tracked how Lucifer moved effortlessly between Maze and Michael while fluently trading off sparring partners with Amenadiel. Long legs danced away and expertly blocked the rapid blows that could never have been stopped by the most well-trained human martial arts expert and she realized with a jolt of overwhelming affection just how much he must have been holding back over the years.

Before she had a chance to appreciate the incredible hand-to-hand combat skills her beloved partner exhibited, movement out of the corner of her eye drew attention.

A wide-eyed Dan and a gaping Trixie hugged the wall along the outskirts of the fight, single minded in reaching their only logical safe space; the precinct’s main Conference Room.

Chloe suppressed a huff of frustration. He was supposed to be home with Trixie, enjoying some daddy daughter bonding time after he’d missed the last few days thanks to his freak out over seeing Lucifer’s devil face.

She crept as close to the wall as possible, gawking at the colleagues frozen mid-motion, and was nearly tackled to the ground by a panicking Ella.

“What the hell’s happening, Decker? Everyone’s gone stone cold and Lucifer’s turned into some badass Bruce Lee.” Eyes round as saucers, the diminutive woman waved a hand toward the celestial fistfight.

“I don’t know. But let’s get out of the way.” Chloe pushed the forensic scientist quickly toward the conference room.

Linda came forward cautiously to meet them, baby carriage at her fingertips, eyes just as disbelieving as the rest. Dan and Trixie surged in behind them, casting worried looks over their shoulders

“Why’s Maze trying to kill Lucifer?” Trixie asked, eyes focused on her favorite non-blood relations.

“Yeah, what the hell?” Dan echoed, arms protectively wrapped around his daughter. “She just helped us find you.”

“I don’t know,” Chloe answered honestly. Lost and confused as the fight raged on in front of them.

“He’s gotta intro me to his trainer. That’s some mad shit right there,” Ella breathed, eyes following every precisely landed blow.

“What are you doing here, anyway?” Chloe hissed at Dan as she reached for Trixie. It was an exercise in extreme false comfort thinking she could in any way protect her daughter from the celestial battle raging in front of them but she didn’t care. It grounded her. “You’re supposed to be home with Trixie.”

Dan relinquished Trixie into her arms and yanked out his gun, eyes tracking the fight and searching for a weak spot.

“Put that down, Dan,” Chloe hissed with a roll of her eyes. “Didn’t work the last time you tried. What makes you think it will now?

Successfully shamed, he lowered the weapon and exhaled shakily. “She really is a demon.”

“Huh?” Ella asked, attention split between the conversation and the fight.

“Course she is, Dad,” Trixie beamed and their heads all swiveled at the same time to gawk at the girl. “Lucifer brought her with him when he left Hell.”

Chloe exchanged a shocked look with Dan, who minutely shook his head to assure her that he hadn’t revealed anything.

Chloe hoped her voice didn’t shake as she asked, “How do you know that, Monkey?”

Trixie tore her gaze from the angelic Thunderdome battlefield and settled big, perceptive eyes on her mother. “He told me who he was the day we met.”

Chloe’s mouth fell open and she very pointedly didn’t look at Dan, whose head snapped around to glare in her direction.

Ella ruffled Trixie’s hair and smiled that warm, pacifying smile of someone who didn’t believe a child’s wild fantasies but indulged them anyway. “He’s so method it’s a miracle he hasn’t won an Oscar.

“Have you ever seen him act - in anything?” Dan snapped, his patience clearly stretched beyond its limits this week. “It’s real, man. All of it!” And she would probably be on her last nerve, too, if she hadn’t gotten laid so thoroughly two days ago.

Had it really only been two days? Chloe groaned inwardly, wishing they could go back to that exhaustingly perfect night. It had done wonders for her stress levels. But nothing was ever easy for them. Always one step forward and two steps back.

“How are we awake?” Linda breathed softly, interrupting Chloe’s memorable trip down pleasure lane. The shocked psychologist waved a hand at the rest of the unmoving officers scattered around the precinct, keeping her voice low so as not to draw attention from the celestial brawl. “We shouldn’t be awake.”

Ella crept closer, jaw slack. “I thought Maze was TeamLucifer? And wait, why are there two Lucifers?” Ella gawked and Chloe’s eyes tracked the effortless way he blocked a series of lightning quick punches.

“Twin brother,” Chloe sighed, fingertips pressing to her temples as the beginnings of a headache formed.

“No way!” Ella exclaimed, bouncing in place as excitement rippled through her. “Why’d he never say anything?!”

“They don’t exactly get along,” Chloe’s eyes slipped shut for a brief moment. And boy was that an understatement.

“Did you know he had a twin?” Ella’s eyes bugged out of her head and Chloe ignored her questioning look. “How did we not know he had a twin?”

“Why is Maze fighting Lucifer? She shouldn’t be fighting him.” The trembling emotion in Trixie’s confused tone tugged at Chloe’s heart and she wished she could shield her child from the hurt that would inevitably follow the outcome of this fight. Her pained eyes followed Lucifer’s expert deflection until with a sudden downward swing, he flattened the demon to the floor with a blow that would have easily shattered the sternum of any normal person.

“Whoa,” Ella breathed, eyes wide and unblinking.

Chloe watched with her heart in her throat as Michael and Amenadiel fell into their line of sight and Lucifer stepped in to catch a fist aimed at the Favored Son.

“Shouldn’t we try and stop them?” Ella asked, eyes darting wildly from one angel to another.

“None of us would survive getting in the middle of that,” Dan breathed, eyes glued to the continuing fight.

Silence fell as they watched the celestial smackdown unfold in front of them. When Lucifer whirled away from Michael and expertly caught Maze’s demon blades out of thin air, Chloe gulped with the realization that Ella and Trixie were about to get a crash course in the very real existence of Angels and Demons. Despite what Trixie thought she knew, the reality of seeing it was an entirely different experience.

They watched spellbound as Lucifer flung the blades in opposite directions and stalked toward Maze, fiery gaze filled with murderous intent. Up until now, he’d simply defended her blows but as he pulled himself up to his full, intimidating height, the unexpected witnesses got an impressive eyeful; the King of Hell, minus his devil face, on full, unmitigated display.

A thrill tingled down Chloe’s nerve endings as he growled, “Enough!”

Maze skid to a sudden stop at the tone that demanded no argument. Chest heaving with exertion, lips pinched in a hard line, Chloe could see the demon struggle against the millennia-ingrained command.

“You Will. Stand. Down.” His eyes burned red, every bit the benevolent King she had at one time sworn to serve.

Chloe had heard that tone only once before; in the Mayan as he ordered the demons to leave their possessed bodies and return to Hell. They had instantly obeyed, clearly fearful of their King’s retribution. Released their hold on the humans they’d murdered and returned to their everlasting, fiery homeland.

And so she was shocked when Maze shook herself free of the ingrained obedience to the command before she continued her advance, fists raised. Her tone a wet hiss of unmitigated fury. “I no longer serve you!”

Lucifer expertly blocked every punch and kick she threw at him and Chloe felt a satisfied pride at witnessing the awesome power that her partner, the _actual_ King of Hell, possessed.

“Please stop, Maze. Please.” Trixie’s small, heartbreaking plea caused Chloe to kneel beside her begging daughter, heart clenching.

They all gasped when Lucifer executed a series of decisive blocks that ended with a solid downward swing that dropped Maze instantly.

Amenadiel slid across the floor and into the wall at the same moment and in the span of a heartbeat, gleaming white wings WHOOSHED across Lucifer’s back as he whirled on his rapidly advancing twin.

“Are those wings? Holy shit. Holy shit,” Ella gasped beside her, eyes blown wide with shock. “No way! Holy shit. You mean it’s all true? I- I thought he was just an act-” Her voice rose with each exclamation until Dan slapped a silencing hand across her mouth.

Chloe’s jaw fell open as Lucifer smoothly stepped back and flung his wings forward with what must have been a well-practiced battle move for how it was so expertly executed.

The gust flung Michael backward into the far wall but Lucifer was blocked from advancing on his downed twin as two blond angels swooped suddenly to his side and smoothly clasped glimmering, silvery cuffs around his wrists. Their wings snapped out of existence and they stepped out of range of Lucifer’s as they sagged with the sudden overwhelming pressure on his arms and shoulders.

Chloe gasped as the weight of the celestial bindings acted like weighted anchors and drove Lucifer to his knees. Icy fear raced down her spine as she watched him defiantly glower at the new arrivals.

“He’s – really the devil,” Ella gulped. Gawked as pieces swooped around the already crowded celestial chessboard. “They’re angels. Holy shit.”

Fear and anxiety warred threatened to overwhelm Chloe as a gleeful Michael advanced on his bound twin. There was more than simple dislike for a sibling in his every overconfident step. This was - He was going to kill his brother right in front of them.

Her world tilted as she heard Amenadiel’s firm, booming voice but while the tone gave her comfort, the panic in his eyes jolted Chloe to her core. They were outnumbered. And he knew it. “Gabriel. Raquel. No!”

A set of brown wings deposited a dark haired angel in front of Amenadiel and the spear she lowered in front of him immediately stopped his advance. Her feathers snapped away as he tried to reason with her.

“Remiel. Don’t do this.” Amenadiel’s plea was cut short by an advancing Michael, the vicious satisfaction on his face one of a contented cat with a bound canary in its clawed paw.

“Time to go home, _Samael_ ,” Michael hissed, eyes glinting with glee as he stalked toward his bound twin.

The air around Lucifer radiated with heated animosity as he glared fiery rage at his triumphant brother.

Chloe watched horrified as the new arrivals flanked Michael, silent and stoic in their support. Every hurt, spiteful word he’d ever said about his family came back to her in a rush. They weren’t here to help him. They hated him. All of them. Except Amenadiel. But would his support be enough?

Beside her, she could feel Trixie struggle in her father’s hold.

They all sat stunned into motionless silence by the celestial force of wills being waged a few feet away.

Lucifer didn’t move and it didn’t look like he could. His long, lean back was bent awkwardly as the obviously weighted cuffs dragged him down. Blood soaked into his shirtsleeves and dripped down his wrists from where they’d dug into his skin and she wondered if she’d suddenly made him vulnerable or if these heaven-sent chains had the power to hurt even an angel.

His shoulders dipped, taking the bright, majestic wings with them, and the muscle beneath his clothing flexed with a discomfort his proud, indignant face didn’t convey.

“Arbiters of Justice,” Ella whispered, eyes unblinking as she surveyed the scene. She clutched the cross around her neck and breathed, “Gabriel and Raquel.”

Hope swirled like a gale force as Chloe watched Amenadiel press forward, his tone firm and unwavering.

“You don’t want to do this.”

“Of course they do,” Lucifer’s glib retort echoed loudly and just once, Chloe wished he wouldn’t behave like his normal, irreverent self. “Self-important pricks, the lot of you.” Lucifer’s neck rolled to toward Amenadiel, “With a few exceptions, of course.”

“You will be silent,” Raquel ordered and Chloe felt a prickle of fear and panic for the man she loved.

Lucifer’s eyes rolled toward his brother. “Oh, I really won’t.”

“You will return to Hell under your own power, or we will escort you.” Raquel’s tone was firm but his stance belayed his nervousness. And if Chloe could see it, she knew Lucifer would take full advantage of the weakness.

“They’re gonna take him back to hell,” Ella gawked, eyes wide and unblinking. “Is this seriously happening right now?”

Trixie pried her father’s hand off her mouth and whispered furiously. “No, Mom. Don’t let them!”

“Amenadiel will stop them,” Linda assured in a stage whisper Chloe was sure they all could hear.

And she wanted with her whole heart to believe Linda but Amenadiel and Lucifer were outnumbered and Lucifer was chained to the floor, unable to move.

Chloe groaned inwardly as Lucifer hissed at Raquel. “You can try, coward.”

She forced herself to stay still as he continued his verbal lashing and this, she realized with overwhelming pride, was a true glimpse of the powerful angel who had been cast out of his home for inciting rebellion. Abandoned by the only family he had ever known and condemned to rule over Hell for eternity.

His eyes flashed red and his stubbled chin jutted defiantly skyward. “Where were you when I was cast from the Silver City, hmm? Meting out Justice from the safety of Mum’s pristine robes? Because Dad knows He wasn’t around when the deed was done.”

“Luci-“ Amenadiel admonished and Chloe could tell that the older angel was struggling to find a way out of this situation.

Michael glared at Lucifer. “You _are_ going home, Samael.”

“The name’s Lucifer,” came the brittle response, teeth bared, eyes burning slits of glowing red hellfire. “The name _I_ chose. You should try it sometime, Michael. Free Will. It’s all the rage nowadays.”

“Samael means poison,” Ella whispered, awestruck with a realization she’d clearly never before considered. “The Big Guy named his kid-” She trailed off with a gulp.

“And Lucifer means Lightbringer,” Linda’s eyes lingered proudly on her defiant patient. “Because that’s what he does or – did.”

“ _And let there be light_ ,” Ella confirmed with a breathy whisper. “He created the stars.”

Before Chloe had a moment to process, a chill swept through her bones.

Michael stalked toward his bound twin, toothily brandishing one of Maze’s demon-forged knives. “And this time, I’m going to ensure you stay there.”

A gasp burst from Chloe’s lips and she could hear similar inhalations as Michael whirled behind his brother and slashed hard at his beautiful, snowy wings.

Amenadiel rushed forward only to be restrained by Gabriel and Raquel, with Remiel’s spear lowered in front of him. He struggled against their hold, eyes wide with horrified disbelief, screams of revulsion on his lips.

As the first slash drew a bloody gash along Lucifer’s angelic white feathers, they fully extended and arched wildly toward their attacker in a futile effort to escape the methodical and deliberate slashes designed to cause the most damage.

Lucifer screamed as the blade sliced through tendons and bone, leaving one wing drooping downward, its bloodied feathers sweeping across the dirty precinct floor.

As Michael whirled toward the other wing, all hell broke loose and Chloe struggled to follow the rush of motion through a flood of tears.

“Michael, stop!” came from a stunned Gabriel as he struggled to keep Amenadiel in place

“This is not as we agreed!” Raquel added simultaneously but his voice was drowned out by Amenadiel’s horrified howl.

Remiel even stepped aside, shock and disbelief etched across her stoic face.

Chloe stood suddenly, determined to put herself in Michael’s path but Trixie was faster. She wrested herself out of Dan’s grasp and darted toward her favorite devil with an anguished cry. “Lucifer!”

Panic gripped Chloe’s heart so hard it stole her breath and she darted forward with a panicked, “Trixie! No!”

Until now, none of the celestials had noticed the humans, so consumed as they were with their own internal disagreement. But every one of their heads snapped toward the screaming Trixie and when Lucifer’s eyes met Chloe’s, they mirrored her helpless horror.

Chloe knew she wouldn’t reach her daughter in time and she screamed as Michael whirled toward her little monkey, his face twisted with out-of-control maniacal murder.

Her pulse pounded in her skull, driving her blood pressure into the stratosphere. She grew light headed as Michael raised his arm and loosed the hell blade covered in Lucifer’s blood toward Trixie.

A chorus of horrified and stunned screams followed and her voice was ripped raw as she watched in seeming slow motion as Lucifer’s long fingers gripped the chains affixed to the cuffs clasped tightly around his wrists.

With a howl infused with unimaginable pain and using every ounce of strength in his possession, he heaved his impossibly weighted body upright. His broken and bloody wings burst outward as the less injured wing intercepted the thrown hellblade. Blood burst from the impact and the severed muscle caused the wing to immediately slump to the floor.

Lucifer’s agonizing scream was drowned out by the howls of disbelief that echoed around him. And the burden of the injured wings combined with the weight of the celestial cuffs drove Lucifer back to his knees. Unable to remain upright, he fell over, cheek impacting hard with the concrete, as his arms awkwardly pinned to the floor behind him.

Torn, bloody wings draped lifelessly atop his body just as Chloe reached a stunned Trixie and enveloped her little monkey into her arms.

Fat, miserable tears slid down her cheeks as she hauled Trixie tightly against her. A split second later, Dan’s chest hit her back and his arms wrapped claustrophobically around her to reach his daughter.

A pained whimper slipped from her gasping lips as she met Lucifer’s unblinking eyes. He offered her a tight, relieved smile before relaxing bonelessly onto the floor, fight drained from his tightly restrained and bloody body.

Before she had a chance to feel torn over keeping her daughter safe and helping the man she loved, Trixie pulled out of her embrace. Chloe’s vision narrowed as her daughter burrowed into her father’s arms and pushed her forward with a tearful plea.

“Mom, help him!”

She’d nodded stiffly and slid across the floor on her knees, coming to a stop at Lucifer’s head, one hand cupping his cheek and the other tugging at the immovable cuff wrapped around his closest wrist.

“Let him go!” Chloe screamed, favoring each of the offending angels with a furious glare. “He doesn’t deserve this!”

She ignored his barely audible, “I do,” and continued to scream at them. Powerful angels left motionless and speechless under the chastisement of a simple angry human.

Her screams turned to pleas until her voice squeaked out a raw, “Please let him go!” She released the cuff and slid her hand into his sweat-damped hair to tilt his unblinking gaze up to hers.

Remiel was the first celestial to break out of the paralyzed stupor and stepped forward, her face a mixture of dismay and shock.

She swung her spear with determined care and as the metal struck the celestial cuffs pinning Lucifer to the floor, they instantly burst apart in a shower of glittering sparks.

Chloe scooted closer, careful to avoid the injured wings and pillowed Lucifer’s head in her lap.

Angry voices rose around her but her focus narrowed in on the angel lying broken and bloody in her arms. She could see him struggle to hide the agony of his injuries but she could feel it in the tremble of his limbs and in the torn and bloody skin of his wrists where he’d impossibly dragged the immoveable celestial chains to save her daughter’s life.

“What can I do?” She asked, her voice raw and wobbly. “What do I do?” Tears dripped down her cheeks; fat, hot and full of grief-filled rage.

The rare whisper of her name on his lips was barely audible and her mouth snapped shut at the sticky, wet sound.

He attempted a smile but it was a soft, pained thing that vanished as he struggled to draw in a breath. The gurgle she heard from his lungs sent a shock of horrified dread down her spine and she swallowed around the sudden lump in her throat as a trickle of blood appeared at the corner of his lips.

“No,” she whispered, suddenly realizing the severity of his injuries. She scanned his bloody wings before locating the hellblade embedded deep into his back. “No, Lucifer. No.”

Lucifer offered Chloe a small, resigned grimace and his eyes drooped with the effort to stay conscious.

“You can’t leave me. Not again.” She tugged him further into her arms as he coughed, a wet sickly sound that pushed more blood to his lips.

TBD


	2. Not on My Watch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking a lot of liberties here. Either things like this haven't happened in the show, or haven't been explained and I just - fit them to the story.
> 
> Still don't have a beta for this so any and all mistakes are mine. If you see something glaringly wrong or off, please let me know and I'll do my best to fix it.
> 
> If anyone with beta experience wants to take a look at the remaining chapters to this, please let me know.

Chapter 2: Not on My Watch.

The din of angry voices around Chloe continued to fade as she focused entirely on the man she loved. Drawn, as always, into his deeply expressive eyes. Moisture clung to the fluttering lashes like little bits of glowing stardust as he tried to stay conscious.

Lucifer raised a trembling hand to her cheek and she caught it as he exhaled her name again. A barely audible whisper. She leaned forward and pulled him closer, fat tears dripping onto his blood-splattered skin. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. Would they never get a chance

Chloe choked on a sob as the broken, “I love you,” resounded loudly in her ears even though it was really a breathy, wet whisper that sounded too much like goodbye. She instantly regretted trying to pry those words out of him in the evidence room. Michael had preyed upon her fears. And she’d fallen for it. She knew Lucifer loved her. He’d shown her in deeds too numerous to count.

With a WHOOSH, another angel appeared, dark wings snicking out of sight the moment her feet landed beside her fallen brother.

“Rae Rae?” Chloe could dimly hear Ella exclaim as Lucifer’s eyes fluttered.

“An official escort, Azrael?” A breathless Lucifer struggled with every word as his eyes turned glassy. “How – kind.”

Chloe glanced pleadingly up at Azrael and was taken aback at how much the young angel’s furious gaze looked out of place on her cherubic face.

She plucked a blade out of her mismatched clothing and pointed it toward Gabriel and Raquel.

“Let Amenadiel go. Right now.”

The brothers stared at her in shock but their iron grip on Amenadiel’s arms loosened enough for him to twist out of them. His eyes landed on the dagger and widened in shock. “How…?”

“Down feather. It’ll work faster. And hurry.”

Michael took a hesitant step forward, eyes less manic, but tone firm and commanding. “This isn’t your place, Azrael.”

Azrael leveled her blade at him and a glimmer of hope sparked deep inside Chloe’s breaking heart when Lucifer’s twin pulled up short at the much smaller angel’s threat.

With another WOOSH, Amenadiel’s wings burst into view and silence fell as Azrael carefully selected a small downy feather and severed it from its place. The angel’s wings shuddered briefly and he rolled his shoulders like one would smooth out a minor irritation.

“If they don’t fall out naturally, they have to be severed very carefully,” Azrael said instructionally to no one in particular. Though Chloe assumed it was for every human in the room. “And it can’t be his own.

Chloe’s gazed tracked Amenadiel as he knelt carefully beside Lucifer and flattened his hand atop a drooping wing. The anguish on his face hurt her heart as his apologetic, “I’m sorry, Luci,” reached her ears.

“It will be quick,” Amenadiel said softly and she gently wrapped her palms around Lucifer’s shoulders, careful to avoid the bloody wings.

Without another word, Amenadiel’s hand quickly wrapped around the demon blade jutting out of his fallen brother’s back and yanked.

Lucifer’s back bowed but he was too weak to pull himself out of her embrace. And his sharp grunt of pain sent a stab of heartache through Chloe. She held his head in her lap with one hand and rubbed his shoulder gently with her other in a vain effort to comfort him. More blood seeped out of his mouth and she heaved back a sob.

“Not on my watch, Lu. Hang on.” Azrael knelt at his side and stared hard at Chloe. “You have to turn away and close your eyes.” She looked over at Dan, Trixie, Ella and Linda, standing frozen in place. “All of you do. Turn away. Now.”

Chloe rested her cheek against Lucifer’s and squeezed her eyes shut just as Azrael placed the downy feather atop the oozing wound. She couldn’t see what happened next but when his body went rigid, she could hear the puffy groan of relief that burst from his lips before he relaxed against her.

“Ok, you can look now.”

Chloe lifted her head to look into the young angel’s smiling face.

Amenadiel stepped forward, focused on the blade in her hand. “How?”

When Chloe looked down, she could see that while Lucifer hadn’t moved, was still panting in pain even, his eyes also held a curious investment in his sister’s answer.

Azrael dismissed him with an amused wave of her diminutive hand. “You think I can’t track down my Dad given property? And – you know the key couldn’t remain on Earth.”

Michael stalked closer, eyes hard. “You shouldn’t have interfered, Azrael.”

Chloe wrapped her arms tightly around Lucifer as if she had a prayer in hell of protecting him if another angel intended him harm. But she needn’t have worried as the much smaller Azrael went toe to toe with his twin.

“Lu isn’t going back to hell, Mikey,” Azrael intoned with a certainty that caused hope to bloom in Chloe’s heart.

His nose wrinkled at the nickname and Chloe had a feeling there was a story behind it that she hoped she would one day hear. “That’s not your decision.”

The Angel of Death turned her nose up defiantly at Lucifer’s twin. “Nor is it yours.”

“Why are you doing this?” Chloe asked, genuinely curious. Lucifer had never even mentioned a twin before Michael had showed up to steal his life but there was obviously ingrained hatred between the two.

Michael’s head swiveled toward her but the disgusted look on his face exposed his true opinion of her kind.

“I am charged with upholding our divine father’s commands and it’s time my rebellious brother returns to his rightful place.” Michael sneered at Gabriel, Raquel and Remiel. “Now you see how he will _always_ rebel. _Always_ disobey father. Your praise was misguided.”

“As I’ve told you. Repeatedly. Hell no longer needs a guardian.” Amenadiel growled, eyes angry slits as he stared Michael down.

“Hell will always need a guardian,” Michael denied immediately.

Gabriel, Raquel and Remiel appeared to have a full conversation with a few very pointed, contemplative looks between themselves.

Raquel tilted his head and regarded Michael with a calm, measured demeanor. “Have you requested our aid under false pretense?”

At the same time, Gabriel admonished, ”You nearly killed a human. A child. You know that is forbidden.”

“Oh please. She was in no danger. I knew _Samael_ would stop the blade.” He glared sanctimoniously at his hesitant siblings. “If you’re too squeamish to assist me then go home and I will handle this myself – as usual.” Michael stalked forward. “After all, it isn’t the first time I’ve cast him into hell.” His head tilted, as if gleefully recalling a past memory. “Sadly, the Fall this time will be considerably shorter.”

Remiel pursed her lips and with a WHOOSH, her wings extended in a graceful arc around her shoulders. With a curt nod to Amenadiel, she vanished in a brief gust of wind.

Gabriel turned to Amenadiel, “We will confirm your claim.”

Wings burst from Gabriel and Raquel’s backs and they regarded their Fallen brother contemplatively before they followed on Remiel’s heels.

As Azrael and Amenadiel positioned themselves between their injured brother and the advancing Michael, Lucifer grunted and on shaking limbs pushed himself to his feet. Chloe wrapped an arm low around his waist as he wobbled on unsteady legs, his drooping wings doing nothing to help with his balance.

“Don’t,” Lucifer warned and Chloe could have sworn his eyes flashed gold for a brief minute.

“You’re going home, _Samael_ ,” Michael hissed.

“That. Is. Not -” Lucifer grit his teeth on every word.

And with a speed Chloe would never have expected he possessed in his injured state, she was pushed back toward Dan. In the same smooth motion, Lucifer liberated Azrael’s blade from her hand.

“-My. Name."

Shocked gasps echoed through the precinct from angel and alike as the sword instantly lengthened in Lucifer’s hand and flames burst along the entire breadth of the blade.

A disbelieving look flashed across Michael’s stunned face.

“That blade can kill father. He must not be allowed to wield it!” Wild, rattled eyes met Amenadiel and Azrael’s.

“Go home, Michael,” Lucifer demanded, jaw set and eyes flashing. Despite his injuries, he cut an impressive and imposing figure as he stalked toward Michael.

“He killed Uriel with it!”

Chloe’s heart thundered against her ribcage at this newest revelation. Lucifer didn’t kill. Not unless -

“Uriel wasn’t on some holy mission from _Dad_. He came here to kill mother,” He spared a brief sorrowful glance at Chloe. “And the Detective.”

\- and there it was. Chloe’s eyes widened. He’d killed for her. That was twice now. That she knew about. She tried not to think of the implications. There would be time later. She hoped.

“You’re not strong enough to fight me, brother,” Michael stalked forward, eyes full of divine justification.

Lucifer stumbled backward, gritting his teeth as his wings dragged broken and bloody on the floor. But his gaze hardened and with a grunt of extreme pain, he raised Azrael’s blade skyward and snarled. “I won’t have to.”

“No!” Amenadiel bellowed as Michael lunged.

“Lu!” Azrael shrieked.

Chloe screamed. Trixie screamed. Linda crouched in front of Charlie’s carriage. Ella prayed to the Big Guy though Chloe knew it would be in vain. Dan’s arms came heavily down around his daughter and Chloe.

They were all thrown backwards as a burst of bright light enveloped the blade, coursing down from the heavens in rivulets of pulsing, golden power. Lucifer’s hand trembled and he grit his teeth as his other hand moved to the hilt to steady the shaking blade.

Chloe found herself being pulled sharply backward and she immediately struggled against the familiar grip until Trixie’s hand slid into hers. Dan guided her back toward the others and together they gawked as the glow sank like liquid sunlight into Lucifer’s skin.

“Go. Home.” Lucifer spoke with the commanding tone of one who expected obedience. Of one who had been and still very much was, a King.

With a growl of manic desperation, Michael lunged but found himself rebuffed by the reverberation of light as it expanded out from the blade in Lucifer’s trembling hand.

With a roar of barely contained agony, Lucifer sank to his knees and lifted his face skyward, eyes glowing gold as the power to forge the very stars coursed through him. Celestial light sang through the blade like the hum of an ancient melody and Michael was buffeted so hard that his wings extended with an abrupt WHOOSH. With a snarl of defeat, he fled under the indefensible onslaught of the raw power of Creation.

Azrael fell to her knees and she exchanged a fearful glance with Amenadiel before her wings unfurled with a SNAP. She vanished in a swirling mass of twitching feathers, leaving Amenadiel to deal with the celestial meltdown.

“Holy Lightbringer, Batman,” Ella exclaimed in wonder beside Chloe as they helplessly watched the light flow steadily down Lucifer’s trembling arms.

“Let it go, Luci!” Amenadiel roared as he struggled to breach the brilliant barrier surrounding his brother.

With her heart in her throat, Chloe wondered if the infusion of light would burn Lucifer from the inside and succeed in killing him where Michael failed. Or – if he was inadvertently creating a star in the middle of the very planet. Neither a preferable option.

They watched helplessly, unable to move as the light grew more intense. Though it was a peaceful melody, it was wrapped in a vibration so strong that she could feel it in her very bones.

But Amenadiel pushed forward, trying desperately to reach his brother as he struggled for control.

Just as the reverberation of celestially summoned power reached a dangerous tipping point, Amenadiel bellowed one final time.

“Samael! Let go!”

Amenadiel surged through the light and desperately cupped Lucifer’s trembling hands in his own. Kind, determined eyes implored that he release the awesome power he’d called upon to defend himself and those he loved.

With a final howl of anguish, the light vanished as quickly as it came, leaving a shivering Lucifer prone in Amenadiel’s arms. The blade hit the floor, fiery light snuffed out the moment it left the Lightbringer’s hands.

Chloe nearly sobbed with joy as Amenadiel protectively enveloped the man she loved in his arms and held tight as he convulsed. His head dipped and lips pressed a gentle, soothing kiss into dark, sweaty hair.

“You stupid, stupid idiot,” Amenadiel exhaled an exhausted breath as Lucifer remained stunningly oblivious in his embrace.

Chloe watched with growing relief as Amenadiel tightened his arms around his delirious brother. His unblinking eyes still glowed with a golden hue as a gentle hand affectionately cupped Lucifer’s cheek in an attempt to interrupt the constant convulsion of his long limbs.

“What’s wrong with him?” Trixie’s concerned whisper pulled her attention from the most heartwarming gesture of sibling love she had ever seen.

“That’s starfire, man.” Ella’s voice echoed loudly. “Holy shit. Did he almost create a star in the middle of the planet?!”

“Ella...” Chloe admonished but grudgingly had to admit the stupefied observation made more than a little sense. She’d wondered the same

Lucifer, the man she loved, who loved _her_ , was God’s Lightbringer; the angel who had made the very sun and stars.

The weight of that knowledge was unbelievably heavy. She’d spent an entire night in his bed being demonstrably shown a level of gentility and electrifying pleasure, by the biblical _devil_ of all people, that she’d never before experienced. He had an underlying strength and power that he kept hidden. Dauntingly so.

But he wasn’t just the devil. There was so much more she didn’t understand. That she didn’t know. But she wanted to. She wanted to spend a lifetime learning everything about her unbelievably flawed and emotionally scarred angel.

An overwhelming need to hold him bloomed beneath her sternum, leaving her gasping for breath. She knelt in front of Trixie, pushed mussed strands of hair behind her daughter’s ears. “You wait here, Monkey, okay?”

But Dan’s arm darted out and stopped her from leaving their side. “Where are you going? He’ll fry you to ash.”

Chloe understood his concern. She really did. It had only been a few days since he’d learned the Big Celestial Secret, after all. But she pried his fingers from her arm and said with a certainty she knew in her heart to be true. “No he won’t.”

She approached slowly, each determined step meant to make a not-quite-coherent Lucifer aware of her presence rather than spook him and risk a power surge of celestial proportions. When Amenadiel’s wary gaze fell apologetically on her, she slowed.

“He would never forgive himself if he hurt you.”

“He won’t,” Chloe replied with a confidence she hoped would override the skittish fear. “Please. Let me try.”

At Amenadiel’s infinitesimal nod, she carefully crossed the distance that separated them and slid to her knees. She reached for Lucifer’s quivering hands still lying limp in his lap but there was no acknowledgement of her presence. His golden eyes simply stared unblinking into a headspace she couldn’t penetrate.

“Lucifer,” she whispered gently, one gentle hand cupping his whiskered jaw while the other closed around his trembling fingers.

She leaned closer, into his eyeline and implored, “Please come back to me.”

When there was no acknowledgment, nothing in him that recognized her presence, she pressed gentle lips to his forehead. “I love you. Please, Lucifer.”

After a few long moments of simply sitting and offering comfort though gentle touch, his eyes flitted sideways to settle on her. His lips were chapped, dry as he whispered an achingly painful, “I couldn’t see my stars.” He inhaled a shaky breath. “In hell. It was the greatest –punishment of all.”

Chloe swallowed deep around the sudden lump in her throat and didn’t bother to wipe away the tears.

Relief crossed his face as he gazed at her like she was his one and only lifeline. “But – I can see them now.”

Unmitigated joy spread across her face as his fingers tightened around hers, driving away the piercing gold until all that remained were little flecks of light swimming in his dark eyes.

A few more long moments, and they cleared even more. “D-Chloe?”

There would never be a time when she didn’t delight at his use of her given name.

“Hey.” She could feel the tense lines of his body and so she slid her hand around the back of his head to scratch lightly into his hair. She hoped he remembered how much he’d enjoyed the soothing gesture as they lay together only a few short days ago in his ridiculously large bed.

His eyes fluttered closed and he hummed softly as her fingers continued to gentle the dark strands. After a few moments, he inhaled a shaky breath, lips twisting in a grimace of pain as he tried to lift himself out of Amenadiel’s arms.

“Gently, brother. We have time.”

While one hand remained comfortably entangled with hers, he roughly cleared his throat and disdainfully wiped blood off his mouth with the back his other.

“No,” Lucifer rasped, his carefully hidden wince unmistakable due to their proximity.

He glanced up at Amenadiel with regret and Chloe could feel panic bubble up from where she’d banished it to the deep, dark recesses of her heart. She turned questioning eyes to Amenadiel as Lucifer continued. “I need you to do one more thing.”

Amenadiel’s eyes slid down his brother’s prone form and across the limp and bloody wings fanned out on either side of them. The strong shake of his head ratcheted up Chloe’s growing panic.

“No.” Amenadiel’s quick, firm denial rocked the foundations of already her already frayed nerves.

“You’re the only one who can,” he breathed unsteadily, his normally playful, expressive eyes a deep reservoir of anguish.

“I – can’t.”

“They won’t heal, Amenadiel.”

Sudden understanding thudded so sharply in her chest that she couldn’t stop the audible gasp that burst from her lips. No. Not this. No.

Lucifer’s eyes slid across her horrified face like an intimate caress and the forced smile revealed the attractive dimples normally hidden by his closely-cropped scruff. “It’s all right, darling. This isn’t the first time I’ve lost them.”

“Lucifer,” she began, breathless, head shaking and hands clutching his in denial. Last time had been his choice. Now – it wasn’t. She felt tears well again in her eyes.

His tired, resigned eyes shifted to Amenadiel. “Please."

She sobbed. Once. To get it out of her system. He didn’t need to see it. Not now. She needed to be strong for him. She huffed a deep breath, set her shoulders and gave his hands a reassuring squeeze. She was here for him. Whatever he needed.

“Help me,” Amenadiel intoned with such an ache in his voice that Chloe simply centered her balance on her knees and opened her arms.

Amenadiel slowly stood and pushed a sluggish Lucifer into her embrace. His head listed heavily on her shoulder as she struggled to determine the best way to place her hands to best support him and not be in Amenadiel’s way. She finally settled for threading one through his dark hair and the other across the top of his shoulders to hold him tight to her body.

She pressed her lips to his damp forehead and whispered a heartfelt, “I love you,” while Amenadiel lifted the discarded hell-forged blade off the floor and glared at it like it was the most offensive object he’d ever laid eyes on.

Tears dripped down her cheeks as Amenadiel flattened a steady hand between Lucifer’s shoulder blades. He inhaled slowly, an attempt to center and calm himself for the offensive task he’d been asked to perform.

Chloe sobbed when he made the first deft cut and Lucifer’s body went rigid in her arms. With each decisive, surgical cut, she could see the crush of misery settle in Amenadiel’s wet eyes.

Lucifer hissed his agony through clenched teeth while fat tears fell unhindered where she rested her cheek atop his head. She whispered, “I love you,” over and over into his hair, hoping it would give some measure of comfort while Amenadiel carved the beautiful, snowy wings from his body.

When the piercing howl of baby Charlie’s cries echoed through the quiet room, Chloe’s eyes shifted toward her friends and her heart somersaulted with angst.

Dan held Trixie tightly in his arms, her head pressed to his chest, her view blocked. Determined to prevent her from being traumatized by the severing of an angel’s wings right in front of her eyes.

Ella knelt on the floor, cross pendant clutched tightly in white fingers, tears streaming down her normally bright, cheery face.

Linda bounced with the screaming Charlie, eyes wet and lips trembling.

As the bloody wings fell heavily to the floor, Amenadiel stepped back and dropped the demon blade with a disgusted grimace.

Dead weight finally lifted from his sagging shoulders, Lucifer took a few deep, centering breaths and pushed himself upright. He swayed, unsteady against her for a few more moments. The disorienting pain likely a heady combination of the amputation, being healed with a _feather_ and the residual star power he’d summoned with Azrael’s blade.

“You’ll understand if I don’t - linger,” Lucifer cast a dispassionate look at the wings even though Chloe _knew_ their loss hurt more than he revealed. She was getting better at recognizing his tells. The ones he hid under a veneer of disarming grins and irreverent innuendo.

With a tender, weary smile and a shaky, grateful hand to her cheek, Lucifer weakly trudged out of the precinct.

He didn’t look back.

And she suddenly felt overwhelmingly bereft.

Amenadiel just stood rooted in place, aghast at his part in this celestial mutilation.

Before Chloe had a chance to react, Trixie collided against her side. “Go with him!”

“Monkey-”

“Lucifer needs you.” Chloe was struck by the firm desperation in her daughter’s wet eyes. In the set of her stubborn jaw. That was her side of the family all the way.

Chloe glanced around as everyone came forward, even Linda, baby Charlie now calm in her arms. She wondered if he’d felt the celestial trauma.

“We’ve got this, Chlo,” Ella reassured, blood-shot eyes somber as she glanced at the floor now littered with crimson-hued feathers and a pair of severed angel wings.

Even Dan gave her a sharp nod, lips pursed with what she could only assume was an inner battle with his own demons.

She gave Trixie a lingering kiss to the top of her head. “If you’re sure?”

Trixie gave her a shove. “Go.”

“Ok,” she agreed. “I’ll call you later.” With a final, mournful glance at the brutalized wings, she hurried after Lucifer, hoping she could catch him before he got behind the wheel of his car.

Angel or not, he was in no condition to drive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Liked it? Hated it? Ideas what may happen next? Leave a review and let me know.


	3. We'll Have Other Chances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haven't been able to find a beta so all mistakes are mine. Enjoy.

**Chapter 3: We’ll Have Other Chances**

The elevator door chimed open and Chloe resisted the urge to slide her arms around Lucifer’s waist and take on some of his weight. She’d tried a few times already and was rebuffed with a charming smile that didn’t meet his eyes and repeated assurances that he would be fine as soon as he was able to recharge with a little sleep.

But he still swayed on his feet and when they stepped out of the elevator she was moments from reaching out to steady him when he veered sharply toward the penthouse’s ridiculously large bathroom.

She watched helplessly as he shucked his clothes and left them where they fell. A sure sign something was wrong. The fastidiously clean Lucifer would never leave such a sight on his pristine marble floor.

Anxiety knotted in her chest as she picked up every piece. Focus drawn to the blood-soaked back and cuffs where his wrists had been ripped apart by the celestial chains and where Amenadiel had carved away his fatally damaged wings.

The shower burst to life while she stood stupefied staring down at his bloody clothing. She dropped it on the edge of the bar to dispose of later and went to check on him. But what she found made her breath hitch and her pulse rise. Her normally strong, invulnerable devil swayed beneath the steady flow of steamy water, simply letting it sluice over his skin, but was otherwise motionless beneath the spray.

With a huff of determination, she pulled off her own clothes and joined him, aghast when her eyes fell to the red and raw wing-shaped scars on his back.

When he didn’t acknowledge her presence, she picked up the floofy sponge, squeezed the ridiculously overpriced, silky soap into it and set herself the task of getting him clean as quickly as possible. Afraid he wouldn’t be able to stay upright for much longer.

“Not exactly how I expected _this_ first to go.” She could hear the humorous intent behind the words but they were delivered on a wearily exhausted sigh that caused her anxiety level to rise. If he fell over, there was no way she could get him into bed by herself.

She pressed a gentle kiss to his shoulder and offered a reassuring smile. “We’ll have other chances.”

But his only response was a non-committal hum, as if speaking took more energy than he had to give, so she redoubled her efforts to clean him quickly. Flecks of dried blood sloughed off his skin, briefly turning the rivulets of water pink. She dabbed gently over the raw scars on his back and bit her lip when he tensed.

“I’m sorry. I’ll be quick.”

She carefully cleaned the deep cuts that ringed both wrists and reverently pressed her lips to each, hopeful that he could feel her love sink beneath the pain. When he didn’t respond, water from the rain shower washed away the salty tears that dripped down her cheeks.

The sponge moved clinically across his smooth skin and she resisted the temptation to trace the freckles painted like star constellations across his chest. She’d have another chance.

“Almost done.” She soothed as her fingers slid into his hair and tugged soap through the dark strands.

He sagged against her though she could feel the strain in his muscles as he kept from leaning too heavily. Always thinking of her. Always.

An appreciative hum rumbled against her neck as his head dropped to give her easier access. And she was grateful, the stretch was not uncomfortable but it was significant and it made it easier for her fingers to gently scratch his scalp.

After a long moment, his hands rested gently at her hips and she knew his strength was almost gone.

He swayed dazedly and lifted his head, dark eyes filled with relieved affection, before dropping his forehead gently to hers.

“Okay, let’s get you to bed.”

“Stay?” he asked, voice low and hesitant, eyes drooping.

As if she would be anywhere else right now. “Wild horses, Lucifer. Wild horses.”

*****

Once she’d helped to towel dry his rosy clean skin, he had no concern for his state of undress and dazedly shuffled toward his indulgently large, plush bed. Tired, disoriented and pliable, he slid easily between the sheets and was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

With her heart in her throat, Chloe pulled the soft covers up to his shoulders. Love and affection bloomed in her red-rimmed eyes as she settled at his side to watch over him while he slept.

She dozed herself until the loud ring of her cell phone sent her scrambling from the bed, concerned it would wake her exhausted partner. She snatched it out of her discarded jeans and hurried out to the balcony.

“Hi Monkey.”

She settled into a lounge chair beside the covered hot tub, smiling at the sound her little girl’s voice.

“How’s Lucifer?”

“He’s doing ok. Sleeping.” She leaned her head back, closed her eyes. Let her daughter’s relaxing voice wash away some of the tension of the day.

“How are _you_ , Monkey?”

“Fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yep.”

“Put your dad on.” Chloe knew how good her daughter was at hiding her feelings.

“He’s out helping Ella. She’s kinda – in shock. I’m babysitting Charlie.”

So much to unpack in that short sentence but Chloe chose to address the largest concern first. “Not alone, I hope.”

“Nope. Linda and Amenadiel are here.”

“Okay. Good.” She hesitated for a moment. She didn’t want to bring up Maze over the phone so she waited to see if Trixie would mention it.

She didn’t.

They spoke for a while longer with a promise to call back in a few hours to provide an update on Lucifer.

The day passed in a blur, with Chloe returning to the bedroom to watch over her unconscious devil and every few hours speaking to Trixie to give her an update – which really wasn’t much of one as Lucifer continued to sleep.

She thanked Dan for taking Trixie and he grudgingly accepted the reasoning, not at all wanting to hear about her feelings for the fallen angel but understanding enough to allow her the space to figure it out. They really were better as friends.

As the sunset turned the clear Los Angeles skyline into swirling hues of red and pink, Chloe grew worried. It had been ten hours without so much as a move or snore out of Lucifer.

A mere moment after her call to Amenadiel, he landed on the balcony, wings WHOOSHING out of existence as he strode into the spacious living room, eyes wide with concern.

“There’s been no change?”

He didn’t wait for her to answer before he strode into the bedroom and flattened a hand atop his sleeping brother’s forehead.

“I’m worried.”

“He looks fine. But – I admit I don’t have experience with the recovery time needed after,” he stumbled over the words, “severing ones wings.”

Silence fell as she whispered a pained, “Yeah. Me either.”

Without another word, he led her out of the bedroom and toward the elevator.

“I’ll watch over him. Linda will be waiting for you downstairs. “

The abrupt subject change threw her for a moment.

“Go for a walk, get some dinner. I won’t leave his side.”

Chloe glanced back at the lump she could see buried beneath the bedcovers and hesitated. She wanted to be here if he woke. Didn’t want him to think she’d abandoned him.

But as if he could read her mind – and she really hadn’t gotten around to asking if that was a skill angels possessed, Amenadiel assured, “I’ll call you if he wakes.”

He didn’t give her a choice as he pushed her into the open elevator doors. “I promise.”

*****

Chloe decided the forced conversation with Linda was a godsend the moment they settled into a little hole in the wall Mexican place near Lux that served the best home made mole Chloe had ever eaten.

“How are you doing?” Linda asked after she’d checked on Charlie, sound asleep in his stroller.

Chloe had never been to a therapist. Not really. Excepting those times Lucifer had dragged her with him for one absurd reason or another.

“I don’t know how to even begin to-,” Chloe trailed off, feeling strung out without the benefit of the preceding high.

“What can I do?

She rubbed her hands over her face. “I don’t know.”

Chloe was grateful when Linda slightly changed the subject. “Trixie seems to have taken everything in stride.”

Her short burst of laughter was loud even to Chloe’s ears. “She believed him all along. From the moment they met.”

“Children, when young, process everything adults say as fact so it’s not surprising.”

“Yeah.” Chloe watched her friend carefully. “I need to talk to her about Maze. They’re close and – what she saw -”

“It hasn’t come up.”

Chloe wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. Her little girl was good at hiding her feelings.

“Ella on the other hand…”

The guilt at abandoning her friend just as she was slapped in the face with literal proof of her faith tugged at Chloe’s battered heart. “Is she ok?”

“Her brain melted a bit, as expected. But yes. She’ll be okay. Lot of air clearing as we cleaned.”

Cleaned. Blood. Lucifer’s blood. All over the precinct floor. She should have been there. Helping her friends. Something else came to mind. Something she’d only learned recently.

“How did – I thought when Amenadiel stopped time, it affected all humans. Do you know why-“

“We talked about that, actually. He theorized that subconsciously he knew he and Lucifer were outnumbered and would need help. So he - self-actualized that help. Similar to how his fears about Charlie being mortal enabled him to completely stop time rather than just slow it.”

“Against invulnerable angels?” Chloe laughed lowly. “Us?”

“I pointed out that waking us up would more likely to get us all killed.” Linda said matter-of-factly and Chloe couldn’t bring herself to disagree. It _had_ almost gotten one of them killed. Her daughter. “He was - upset .”

But Linda’s calm reassurance interrupted the guilt-laden rabbit hole she could easily have spiraled into when led to focus on what could have been. “ Anyway, you were where you needed to be. Ella will be fine.”

“And Dan?” Chloe inquired with a wince. He hadn’t taken the revelation well. At all. “He – didn’t take it well.”

Linda huffed a short laugh, as if she knew Dan had tried to shoot Lucifer. “He’s doing fine. I think Trixie’s complete acceptance has helped with that.”

The conversation turned to safer, less stressful topics that relieved the crushing tension from Chloe’s shoulders.

*****

Chloe returned to the opulent penthouse in better spirits than when she’d left. Not exactly relaxed but lighter than she’d felt since waking up in Lucifer’s ridiculously large, plush bed to a sweet, smug smile and pleasant ache in all the right places.

She was grateful for the conversation that didn’t just focus on the topic of the moment and Professional Linda had stepped aside so Friend Linda could have her moment to shine. She had listened with more understanding than Chloe probably gave her credit for as she raged about Michael. Lucifer’s twin brother. An angel. Who had manipulated other celestial siblings to follow him to earth to force their rebellious brother back to Hell.

By any means necessary.

No one in their right mind would believe this was her life now. She barely believed it herself.

Dinner and a walk had given her the chance to sooth her simmering rage. She was grateful Linda and Amenadiel had given her the opportunity.

But she was ready to resume her vigil at Lucifer’s side.

So when the elevator doors swung open, she didn’t expect to see Amenadiel standing at the top of the steps that led into the bedroom, a guardian angel in every sense of the word, arms crossed and staring down – Maze.

Memories shot like rapid fire through her head.

Maze hurling her deadly-to-angels demon knives straight at Lucifer. Him snatching them out of thin air in a move so quick no human could have replicated it. A flash of wings and an agonized cry as one of those blades sank deep into his back.

Chloe hurried off the elevator and crossed the distance that separated them quickly.

Before she had the chance to speak, Maze waved a dismissive hand. “I’m not here to hurt him.”

The admission did little to calm her racing heart. “Then why are you here?” She immediately regretted the accusatory tone. But not the words.

Maze was coiled tight as a snake on the cusp of striking an unsuspecting prey but replied with a surprisingly even, “I heard what happened. I wanted to make sure he was ok.”

“He’ll be fine,” came a tone from the top of the steps that invited no argument.

Chloe’s eyes shifted from Amenadiel’s protective position to a disadvantaged, if not apologetic, Maze. In that moment, she knew that God’s Firstborn would be moved for no one in protection of his Fallen brother.

Maze’s lip curled in haughty dismissal. “Have you ever -"

“I had to _do_ it, Maze.” Amenadiel descended a few steps, looking every bit a Celestial Soldier advancing on his prey. The anguish in his voice renewed Chloe’s heartache. “Cutting away divinity may be something you’ve perfected over the millennia, but for me-“

“Right,” she interrupted with a shake of her head, taking the chastisement in stride. “There was no one else.”

“That’s right.” Amenadiel confirmed and slowly added, “Because you betrayed him.”

With an unconcerned roll of her shoulders, her blasé retort unsuccessfully masked the flicker of shame that crossed her face. “It’s what we do.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Chloe stepped in, hoping her forced neutral expression looked natural.

Hurt slithered along her raw nerves when Maze ignored her. “Looks like you’ve got things handled here so I’ll just,” she gestured at the open elevator doors, “go.”

“Maze,” Chloe started forward but stopped as the demon raised a hand. She ignored Maze and pressed ahead anyway. “He’s been unconscious for over ten hours. Is that – what happened before?”

Chloe watched a myriad of expressions cross Maze’ face until they settled on, “No.”

Her heart plummeted into her stomach. This wasn’t normal. She _knew_ it!

“He’ll heal quicker if you’re not around, Decker.” The accusatory tone was biting.

Her response was immediate. Defensive. “I don’t make him vulnerable anymore, Maze.”

An indistinguishable emotion flickered briefly in Maze’ eyes before she whirled on her heel and strode into the open elevator.

“Good,” echoed in the space as the doors closed.

Chloe scrubbed her hands across her face.

Amenadiel descended the last two steps and was at her side in a heartbeat. “His divinity is still intact.”

She was too mentally and physically exhausted to even bother with trying to understand. “I don’t even know what that means.”

He offered her a patient smile. And she felt like a child being given information only an adult would understand. Human comprehension of the divine was limited, after all. “It means he’ll be fine. He’s had more than one trauma today. It will just take time.”

Her relaxed buzz after talking with Linda vanished. “Yeah.”

His calm concern weighed heavily where it should have been a relief. “Are you? Okay?”

“Yeah. I’m –“ She risked a look into the bedroom and exhaled a heavy sigh. “I’ll be okay.”

“I can stay.”

She really, really just wanted to curl into Lucifer’s side and sleep for the rest of the night. “No. No. I’ll call you in the morning.”

Grateful that he accepted her response without argument, she walked him to the elevator. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure, Chloe. Get some rest.”

With those final parting words he was gone and she sluggishly made her way back to the bedroom.

After rummaging in his closet for a shirt, she took a long moment to enjoy the slide of the soft, expensive fabric on her skin. So gentle and light, like one of his warm, full-mouthed kisses. Because that was a thing that she could freely enjoy now. That they could enjoy together.

She slipped into bed and curled around him like a jellyfish, determined to wake as soon as he so much as moved.

*****

A wet warmth crept along Chloe’s neck, slowly drawing her out of her comfortable, sleepy haze. Goosebumps skittered across her abdomen and she exhaled a soft sigh as her eyes popped open.

A bright-eyed Lucifer lay pressed against her back, lips fluttering down her skin while one hand crept under her shirt to continue its gentle exploration.

A contented sigh slipped out but she resisted the urge to lean into him and let him have his way. Instead, she rolled over and with a relieved smile took in his surprisingly relaxed demeanor and dark, questioning eyes.

“You’re ok,” she breathed, her hands coming up to frame his whiskered cheeks.

He huffed an amused, “Of course I am. Immortal, remember?” and slid a hand beneath the shirt she still wore, eyes slipping appreciatively over where it parted at the neck to reveal pale, creamy skin.

With a disbelieving purse of her lips, she pushed herself up on an elbow to gaze down at him. A short battle of wills ensued until he finally sighed dramatically and gave up his explorations, unable to mask the slight wince as his back hit the mattress when he rolled over.

Her heart clenched. “I saw that.”

He just shrugged and she forced herself not to dwell on the thought that he felt so unworthy of care that such a dismissive reaction was his immediate default.

“I’ll be right as rain in no time, Detective.”

“And until then?”

His eyes swept down her body and she felt her skin flush from the unabashed appraisal. When he leaned forward, his breath was hot against her cheek. “Plenty of other distractions to be had.”

She closed her eyes and flattened her hands in the center of his chest. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to have sex with him. She did. Even more so now that she’d had an all too brief introduction to those incredible skills he’d always bragged about. But now was not the time. And the look on her face must have made that quite clear to him, too, because with a heavy sigh, he rolled to the other side of the bed and stood.

Instantly, her eyes were drawn to the wing-shaped scars on his back. Exactly like the ones she’d seen not too long after she met him. Before she’d Believed. He’d actually prevented her from touching them then, face awash with a surprised, defensive longing that made her heart ache.

He stalked out onto the balcony and she heaved a huge sigh, pushed herself up and followed him. Allowing him to spiral into an emotionally misunderstood rejection wouldn’t help this situation. Though, she didn’t want to push him to talk if he didn’t want to. She just - wanted to be there for him if he did. An encouraging presence for him to lean on, confide in. Because that’s what they did now. With a reflective smile, she realized, that’s what they’d always done.

He’d left the sliding door open, which was encouraging. Though, she’d have followed him even if he’d closed it. She found him reclining on a long lounge chair not far from the covered hot tub, pulling in a long, contented drag from a cigarette.

His eyes tracked her as she approached and while she didn’t want to trample on any lingering insecurities or anger as a result of yesterdays events, she didn’t want to leave him to wallow either.

“Can I join you?” She asked softly, a little afraid of rejection herself. Simply seeing him upright and awake did thrilling things to her insides.

His eyes swept down her body and back again and she could see him struggle with an innuendo-laden response. After a long moment, he switched the cigarette to his other hand and opened his arm in invitation.

She smothered a relieved sigh as he took her hand and helped her settle onto the plush cushion to recline at his side.

“I’m fine,” he said with a deep drag from the cigarette.

She nuzzled her nose into his bare chest. “I know.”

He dropped the cigarette onto the side table and wrapped his long arms around her. She snuggled close, the heat from his bare skin and the thud of his heart against her cheek a balm to frayed nerves.

“I just – want to be here if that changes.”

“This isn’t the first time I’ve lost my wings, Detective.” His nonchalant response came as no surprise but she could feel the tension in every line of his body.

She knew it hurt. Despite all his protestations to the opposite, he wanted to be loved. He wanted to be accepted. Not just by his father, but by his siblings as well. And they’d done nothing but hurt him.

But he’d have to come to that realization himself. She could only lead the stubborn mule to the water. He was literally an immoveable force that she could never push to drink from the unfathomably deep waters of emotional vulnerability unless he was willing to take that step.

So she simply wrapped herself around him like a soft blanket, questing hands careful to avoid his raw back and drew his head down to pillow on her chest.

He exhaled a long, low hum of appreciation as her fingers slipped into his hair and began to tug gently at the soft strands. She felt him relax under her ministrations and leaned down to press a kiss to his forehead.

“I love you,” she whispered, as one finger slipped down his whispered cheek to touch his mouth. “And I’m here.”

His head shifted slightly from its comfortable pillow on her breasts so he could look up at her, eyes hopeful and expressive. Rage simmered beneath her very skin at how deeply he had been starved for even the barest of meaningful affection. It made her desperate to give him all the good in the world and make him forget all the bad that had come before.

She offered him a warm, assuring smile and bent to nuzzle her cheek against his. “I’m here,” she repeated and returned her fingers to his hair.

He relaxed into her softness with a soft, rumbling hum. “I know.”

*****

Chloe woke as a shadow fell across where she and Lucifer lay wrapped together in the afternoon sun and rapidly blinked the sleep from her eyes.

Lucifer was still out with his head pillowed on her chest and her fingers twitched in his hair as she watched Maze stare impassively down at them. The estranged demon stood with her hips canted defensively and Chloe could see a myriad of emotion flicker in her eyes.

Chloe felt a slight twinge of pity as Maze’s eyes zeroed in on the wing-shaped scars on Lucifer’s back.

“Relax,” Maze said sharply, tone defensive. “I’m not here to hurt him.”

Chloe could feel his body tense but she tightened her fingers in his hair, hoping that he would remain where he was until Maze spoke her peace.

She could see the moment Maze reconsidered her olive leaf and backtracked. “Not that a human could stop me if I wanted to.”

“But I would.” Lucifer’s attention shifted wholly toward Maze and while she couldn’t see the look he leveled at the demon, she could feel the bunch of his muscle moments before he slid gracefully out of her arms.

Chloe watched as he pulled himself to his full, imposing height, ready to neutralize the unfortunate threat.


	4. I Made a Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wasn't able to find a beta so all mistakes are mine. If you notice something glaringly wrong, if I missed something in canon, please let me know and I'll do my best to fix it.

**Chapter 4: I Made a Promise**

Maze had the good sense, for a change, to step back as every lean, lithe muscle in Lucifer’s body coiled, ready for a fight.

But Chloe knew he wouldn’t attack his former servant. Not without provocation. And she didn’t think Maze had provided enough – yet.

“Don’t tell me you’re mad. I didn’t hurt your special human.”

Chloe gasped an admonishing, “Maze.”

But the demon ignored her and kept her steady and unblinking gaze on Lucifer. “I want what you kept from me.”

Chloe’s brows crinkled with confusion.

“Michael renege on your deal?”

Maze shrugged dismissively. “Probably. Haven’t seen him.”

“And you won’t. He’ll be back home licking off his humiliation over losing to me - again.”

“I heard.”

“From whom, exactly? You missed the grand finale. And the intermission.” Lucifer cocked his head, contemplating. “Come to think of it, you missed the entire second act, too.”

Maze folded her arms and stared.

“Heaven-sent chains, misguided siblings, summoning the power of creation itself and, of course, the nauseatingly repetitive wing-ectomy.” He extended his long arms. “There, all caught up.”

Chloe didn’t understand what was happening as her gaze shifted between the two.

“Smalltalk is beneath you, Lucifer.”

While she wouldn’t have put it in such blunt, unkind terms, Chloe had to agree. He was stalling. Not nervous but -

His sigh was deep and resigned. “I made a promise, Maze.”

“You had no right.”

Chloe could feel the sudden heat radiating off him moments before his eyes turned a deep, devilish crimson. His voice deepened to the same level he’d used when demanding the rebellious demons bent on stealing baby Charlie go home and she felt a tremor of pride slither down her spine. He was a truly impressive, dominating sight to behold.

“I had every right. _I_ do not renege on deals.” Without another word, Lucifer strode into the penthouse, waning sunlight highlighting the angry red scars on his back, his silk boxers slung low on his hips.

Maze followed at his heels as Chloe scrambled off the plush lounge chair to follow.

“So you’re not going to give it to me?”

His dark eyes swept across Maze’ hostile face, assessed her like they would a piece of easily subdued prey. But then, with an infinitesimal smirk, he settled smoothly into a chair across from the expensive leather couch, every bit the imperious and immovable King.

“Sit down, Mazikeen of the Lilim.”

She crossed her arms and stood stubbornly rooted to the spot.

His eyes flashed red. “Sit. Down.”

Chloe instantly perched on the end of the couch, eyes wide. And she’d be lying if she even tried to claim that authoritative tone didn’t send a thrill of excitement skittering across her skin.

His normal voice returned and his chocolate gaze turned warm, though it was still charged with emotion. “I’m going to tell you a story.”

He spread his arms atop each armrest like a King waiting for his underlings to quiet.

Silence fell and the staring contest began. Chloe wasn’t sure what was happening, but she was more than a little curious.

Maze broke first.

“I don’t need a story to tell me it’s mine.” Maze seethed as she stared at the dark ring on his finger.

Chloe’s eyes narrowed as she followed the demon’s gaze. He’d had that ring ever since she met him. But – it belonged to Maze?

“Yet she gifted it to me.”

“This is stupid,” Maze snapped as her hell forged blades slipped into her hands from an unseen sheath.

A sliver of fear raced down Chloe’s spine. She wouldn’t attack him. Not again.

But Lucifer simply tilted his head and continued to watch the demon, seemingly unconcerned with the brandishing of weapons that could literally kill him. And as if he could read her thoughts, one long finger rose from the armrest to encourage silence. Though his nonchalance did nothing to curb the sudden concern that this conversation was about to go pear-shaped.

Malice twisted her lipsticked mouth as Maze cocked her head toward Chloe, eyes still locked on Lucifer.

“You wouldn’t make it in time.”

Chloe’s mouth fell open and her heart raced as she watched his jaw clench ever so minutely. And his unblinking eyes hardened to such a degree that if looks could kill, Maze would be a smoldering pile of ash by now. What the hell had happened to pull the two of them apart like this?

“Detective-” he began calmly but trailed off when she interrupted.

“Nope. Not moving. Maze won’t hurt me.” She didn’t know what possessed her to make such a claim but she slid closer and ignored the quickly masked look of surprise that crossed the demon’s face.

“Det-”

Tired of a power struggle she couldn’t even begin to understand, Chloe straightened her shoulders, put on her most stern mom face and snapped. “Maze. Sit down and listen.”

Chloe set her jaw and leveled an encouraging half-smile at Lucifer, hoping he would accept her attempt to diffuse the situation. “Tell your story.

Maze huffed an amused laugh and settled onto the couch, smirking at Lucifer. “You’ve so got your hands full with that one.”

He smiled affectionately at Chloe for a brief moment and she exhaled a relieved sigh. Death re-match delayed. For how long, she had no idea.

“Out of respect for your mother,” Lucifer began, but trailed off like a patient parent whose rambunctious child interrupted out of turn.

“She’s dead,” Maze snarled, desperately hiding the pain of the loss behind misplaced anger. “I found her and she died.”

Chloe opened her mouth to offer condolences but Lucifer pressed on before she could.

“Out of respect for your mother and at her request,” he continued as if Maze hadn’t interrupted him and Chloe wished he’d at least acknowledge her pain. Impossible, of course, when he was dealing with his own. Even if he wouldn’t admit it. “I’ve not told her story to anyone."

Maze crossed her arms and waited, impatience warring with curiosity on her face.

“She was Adam’s first wife. Cast out of Eden for,” he huffed a sardonic laugh. “For wanting free will. For being unwilling to be subservient to him.”

Chloe’s mouth fell open.

“Which earned her a one way trip to Hell courtesy of dear old Dad for her betrayal.” His wrists lifted skyward off the arm of the chair, as he continued. “He’s nothing if not consistent in his punishments.”

Chloe leaned closer, intrigued. She hadn’t exactly been a Sunday School girl and her passing knowledge of religious texts was mediocre at best. Despite the research she’d done when in Rome.

“Then I was kicked out of the celestial house.” His mouth twisted into a wry smile that made Chloe’s heart hurt. “For the exact same reason. 

Chloe risked a glance at Maze, who simply sat immobile on the couch, pretending she wasn’t as interested in the celestial tale as she was.

“We – bonded, I suppose you could say, over the shared pain of being cast out of the only home we’d ever known. She recognized a need and gifted me an army whose sole purpose was to serve the King of Hell. And then she left.”

“She could do that?” Chloe found herself asking, wide-eyed. “Just - leave - hell?”

His eyes were swimming with restrained emotion and she felt small for asking, for interrupting. “She’d been cast out of Eden. She would never be welcome in Heaven. But she could go to Earth.”

“You helped her abandon us.” Maze intoned matter-of-factly, eyes narrowed and teeth bared.

“I owed her a debt.”

“Doesn’t make it right,” Maze snapped, in no mood to be reasonable when she felt so wronged.

“Like in many cases, Dad knows, right and wrong is subjective.”

It was a hard won battle, but Chloe bit her lip to keep herself from responding. The two of them made one hell of an emotionally deficient pair.

Maze’ eyes hardened, narrowed. This wasn’t what she wanted to hear and Chloe worried that Lucifer, not adept at catching emotional clues on a good day, wouldn’t notice.

Unfortunately, she was right. He barreled forward with his tale, heedless of Maze’ emotional spiral and his part in it.

“She wanted her perfect children to be unbreakable. Unable to be banished from their home like she had been banished from Eden. Unable to be manipulated because they had no family in Hell from whom they could be torn.”

“So she left,” Chloe whispered, unable to fathom any reason at all for a mother to abandon her children.

“And helped shape the greatest moments in the history of the world until she asked for my help in 1946.”

“I know the rest of this story,” Maze snarked under her breath.

A moment of confusion passed across Lucifer’s face until he nodded slowly in recollection.

“The urchin.”

Chloe pulled herself up straighter, wondering how her daughter could have any part of this story. “Trixie?”

His response was factual and suspiciously devoid of emotion when his eyes slid briefly to hers. “You skipped the last game night. She came alone. Asked me to tell her a story.”

Chloe thought back along the suspected timeline of events. It didn’t take long. She’d ignored his multiple attempts to help her come to terms with being a ‘miracle’ child gifted to God’s Fallen son. She still felt shame at her – overreaction to the news.

“I thought she was with Dan.”

“Why would Lilith give up her immortality?” Maze inquired, clearly unconcerned with her part in involving Trixie. They were _so_ talking about this later. “Why would anyone give that up?”

The somber smile that twisted his lips reached his eyes and Chloe was struck at how much of an emotional toll the telling of this story was having on him.

“In the end, she felt the generations of lives that she’d lived meant nothing.”

Maze snorted derisively. “That’s stupid.”

His shoulder lifted in a short, clipped shrug. “I thought so, too.”

“That makes sense, actually,” Chloe said softly, understanding.

Two sets of eyes swiveled her way and she felt instantly vulnerable, exposed. How to explain this to two immortal beings who had lived more lifetimes than she could even fathom?

“Even though our lives are short in comparison to yours,” Chloe waved her hand between them, “We make connections,” Her eyes locked with Lucifer’s to drive home her point but she needn’t have bothered. His gaze softened and the soft purse of his lips indicated he understood. “And it’s those connections, those experiences, that make life worth living.”

“ _Knowing there’s an end. That’s what makes the rest of it,_ those connections _, count._ ” Lucifer confirmed, his voice far away as if he were repeating words he’d heard long ago.

“Yeah, well I’ll never get the chance. Thanks to you,” Maze seethed, eyes narrowed to slits.

“That’s not fair, Maze,” Chloe said sharply. “He did as your mother asked.”

Maze rolled her eyes. “Of course you’re gonna defend him.”

Lucifer stood and approached the furious demon, steps measured, almost - resigned.

And slid the ring off his finger.

“She gifted this to me.” He deposited it in the palm of his hand and held it out to Maze. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Chloe watched Lucifer cup his hands together and focus, his eyes never leaving Maze. After a moment, tendrils of wispy dark smoke floated from between his clasped hands. When he parted them, he gently blew it toward Lilith’s daughter.

It swirled and vanished quickly into the demon’s skin and it was only when he’d replaced the ring on his finger that she noticed the gem had turned white. She was struck by how much such a small change now fit the man he had become. A dark relic of his past transformed in the wake of a brighter future.

Maze inhaled sharply and a myriad of emotions passed across her face so quickly there was no way to identify them. She stood suddenly and made for the elevator.

Chloe leapt to her feet and after a brief squeeze of Lucifer’s arm, she marched straight in after the prickly demon.

“Making sure I go?” Maze crossed her arms and leaned against the wall as the doors closed.

“He gave someone his word. You know what that means to him.”

“Until it doesn’t.”

Chloe regarded her with a patient look. “Has that ever happened?”

“You don’t know him. How he _used_ to be.”

“Everyone changes. He’s changed.” Chloe smiled warmly. “So have you.”

“Yeah, well, I – feel things now.” The rage in Maze’s eyes hadn’t dissipated and that worried Chloe.

“You felt things before, too. Or you wouldn’t be so angry with him.”

“I wanna see Trixie.”

Chloe took a deep, measured breath. “She saw you try to kill Lucifer in the precinct, Maze.”

Maze pursed her lips and gritted, “So that’s a no?”

“For now.”

“That’s not fair,” she snarled as if she had any rights to Trixie at all.

“She’s my _child_ , Maze.”

Maze stalked forward, intending to intimidate, but Chloe held her ground. “And to hell with the rest of her friends, huh?”

“Maybe lose the chip and we can reevaluate visitation,” Chloe said sternly, fully aware that Maze could easily snap her in two if she were so inclined. But this was her _child_.

The elevator slid to a stop and the doors chimed as they swished open. Maze exited quickly. “I won’t forget this, Decker.”

Chloe sighed sadly, not quite understanding how their relationship had deteriorated and not at all sure how to fix it.

“Actions have consequences, Maze.” She jammed her finger into the penthouse button, unable to control every protective motherly instinct and willing to compromise not at all. Not right now. “We can talk when you’re ready.”

As the doors closed, Chloe could swear she’d seen tears glistening in Maze’s eyes as she turned away.

When Chloe got back upstairs, Lucifer was buzzing through the room like he was high, his eyes bright and expressive.

She stopped beside the piano to watch his long, nimble fingers finish buttoning a crisply pressed white shirt. He’d left the top two buttons open, exposing a tantalizing vee of pale skin that she very much wanted to lick. Maybe lighten the heavy weight of the last day’s events.

He swooped closer, a predatory smile on his lips. “Let’s go for a drive.” His head tilted as he took in her glazed expression and she recognized the instant he caught on. “Or – something far more pleasurably horizontal?” His eyes skimmed appreciatively down her body and back up again. “Or vertical. You know I’m not picky.”

The energy sparking around him seemed to glow with an ethereal light. Caught up momentarily in his charming magnetism, she went easily when his hands slipped low around her hips. He didn’t pull her forward and demand, but instead left the choice to her, as always.

She circled his healed wrists and stroked the soft skin with her thumbs for a moment. His eyes darkened and his fingers spread across her lower back. But she only leaned up and gave him a quick peck on the lips. Getting him out of the penthouse and the tempting privacy it afforded would be a good way to encourage conversation. “A drive. Yes. Let’s.”

His lips twitched and he quickly masked the disappointment behind a disarming grin. Instead, clasped his hands together. “Good. Brilliant. Get dressed. Light’s a wasting. Chop chop.”

He shuffled her off to the bedroom and beelined for the bar. Before she turned to grab some clothes out of the overnight bag she’d left on the floor, she watched him down an entire glass of scotch.

Something was wrong. Other than the obvious. She wondered if he’d taken something while she was downstairs with Maze. He had drawers full of illegal substances, after all.

She sighed and pulled on her clothes, determined to encourage a conversation long overdue.

*****

The sleek black corvette, with a still oddly chipper Lucifer at the wheel and curiously observant Chloe in the passenger seat, sped along the tranquil Pacific Coast Highway.

With the clear, expansive ocean on the left and the Malibu mountains on the right, the middle of the day was bright and the breeze was a welcome relief as the sun beat coolly down on them from above.

They drove in silence for a while so Chloe simply reached across the space between them and placed a reassuring hand over his where it rested on his thigh.

His gaze slid smoothly across her and his lips twitched with into a half smile. When his hand turned palm up and his long fingers engulfed hers, her heart fluttered with so much love for this stupidly complicated man.

“Are you okay?”

His eyes crinkled like he was surprised by the question and it hurt her heart to think he was so unaccustomed to anyone actually asking after him, caring about him. Other than what desires he could fulfill. She would make it her mission to tell him and show him. Regularly.

“Quite well.”

“It’s been an emotional few days,” Chloe prodded, keeping her tone light but leading, hoping he’d take the bait.

She wasn’t disappointed.

His hand rose dismissively off the steering wheel as he huffed, “Nonsense. It’s just another normal day in my Dad forsaken life.”

“Your siblings try to kill you regularly?”

He scoffed. “They weren’t trying to kill me.”

“Just send you back to hell with no way to leave again,” Chloe said more matter-of-factly than she intended and felt awful when he winced.

“Michael clearly had his own agenda,” he snarled, lip curling in distaste.

“But they-”

“Seriously,” his ire rose with each word, definitely done with this discussion.” What’s the point of this?”

He could turn hot and cold on a dime but he was always brimming with emotion. Always. But dealing with unaccustomed feelings had never been his strong point. He was the oldest, most immature person in the world who self-sabotaged everything good in his life, Linda had said. Well, she wouldn’t let him. Not this time. So, she steamrolled ahead confident that he wouldn’t drive them off the road if he got really angry.

“Because it hurts and you’re just moving on like it didn’t.”

“It’s not as if I can do anything about it, Detective. Might as well move on.” The resignation behind the words sliced effortlessly like a hot knife through butter. Damn his family for doing this to him.

“Do you ever see them?”

The wry twist of his lips answered the question before the word did. “No.”

“But why would-”

His exasperated, “Chloe,” stopped her instantly. He used her name so rarely and only, only during emotionally charged circumstances. And there was nothing that could strip him emotionally raw than discussion about his twisted, dysfunctional family.

“I’m the bad boy who got thrown out of the house and into hell for inciting a rebellion against the Almighty Dad. They’re good little sycophants. I’m - not. No grey area. There never will be. No need to beat that very dead horse.”

She gently squeezed his hand, thumb brushing reassuringly over his long, elegant fingers.

“Seems a bit extreme.”

He shrugged. “You’ve met Michael.”

She offered a disapproving huff and didn’t miss the smile that crossed his face at her reaction. Someone was finally on his side. Supported him. Of their own free will.

“It’s their loss.” Chloe began, reaching over to add her other hand to their clasped one still resting between them. “And while you can’t choose your blood family, you do have another one. One that chose you. That you chose. And they won’t abandon you. Ever.”

His eyes brightened for the first time since she’d brought up the painfully emotional topic and the fuckstruck smile that spread across his face made her insides turn to jelly.

“Well then, that’s all that matters, isn’t it?”

*****

Maze stood awkwardly in the middle of the empty penthouse, swirls of unwelcome emotion in her glittering eyes. She bit down hard on her lip, enough to draw blood, and licked it away with an angry sweep of her tongue.

She marched to the bar and poured herself a full glass of Lucifer’s finest. Downed it with one swig. Enjoyed the burn. Out of the corner of her eyes she noticed a familiar Armani jacket – covered in blood and small bits of downy feathers.

The jacket he’d been wearing when she’d attacked him. When she’d sided with Michael, the twin who had bound him, dragged him through the streets of the Silver City, and literally tossed him out. She knew better. And she’d done it anyway. Betrayed her former King. Her - friend.

A sudden overwhelming guilt swept through her veins but she tamped it down with a loud, annoyed grunt.

“Well this just - sucks,” she grit between clenched teeth. Whirled away from the reminder of her betrayal and stalked to the piano.

She’d destroyed his property once before and she resisted the urge to let the overwhelming, unwanted emotion drive her to rage. She was here to apologize, or, at least thank him for giving up the birthright her mother never wanted her to have.

Chloe had been right as much as she hated to even consider admitting it. He’d made a promise to her mother and that integrity was everything to him. Always has been. With as much as they’d both changed since leaving hell that was one part about him that hadn’t wavered. Ever.

She wandered out to the balcony and tilted her head to the cloudless sky. Taking solace in how the warmth of the sun beat down on her face and burned away some of her sharp, rough edges.

Things had changed since she’d been here. Lucifer had changed. There would be no going back. No way to change the past. And if she wanted to move forward, she would have to repair the relationships she’d damaged.

And maybe. Just maybe she could carve out a place with the unbelievably eccentric family made up of demons, angels and humans that she’d chosen, instead of chasing the fallible one she’d been born into.

It would be hard. But nothing worth having was ever easy.

*****

As Chloe and Lucifer walked hand in hand into Linda’s house, a jubilant Trixie launched herself into his arms.

Where once there had been a distasteful hesitation, his hands now lay gently on the girl’s shoulders and lingered a little longer than they used to.

When Trixie moved to embrace her mother, a bright-eyed Ella pushed forward and wrapped herself around her angelic friend.

Chloe watched him scan the room with real, incredulous warmth in his deeply emotional eyes and clutched his hand tightly.

Linda bounced a happily cooing Charlie and waited for them to make their way off the doorstep.

Amenadiel’s wide, accepting smile stood, behind them, ever the protector. Even Dan’s grudging acceptance was offered in the form of a short nod. Every expression of Will given freely.

Something Lucifer had led an entire rebellion over. And lost.

But he’d won something far greater in the end.

He’d learned that the strongest bonds didn’t have to be the ones that you were born into. They were the ones that you scraped and fought and bled and cried to build.

They were your chosen family. The family would be with you through thick and thin.

Until the very end.

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Knowing there’s an end. That’s what makes the rest of it count.” - Dialogue from Lucifer episode 5x04
> 
> There will also be a little epilogue to tie up a few loose ends.


	5. Epilogue: A Grave Error

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who took this creative ride with me. Even if it wasn't to everyone's tastes, I appreciate more than you know everyone who left feedback.

**Epilogue: “A Grave Error”**

The darkness was so pervasive in this little pocket of Beverly Hills suburbia that not even the street lights could penetrate as Azrael landed in the neatly manicured back yard. Her wings snicked quickly out of sight as she cocked her head and peered through the window.

She knew the occupants wouldn’t see her. As usual, it was easy to skulk in the shadows, humans never the wiser. Even Lucifer and Amenadiel wouldn’t see. Not if she didn’t want them to.

At her heels, Gabriel and Raquel landed, wings vanishing with little pops that didn’t register on any audible human scale.

“Confirmed Mikey was lying, huh?” Otherwise, they would have already clasped Lucifer in unbreakable, celestial chains. And his twin would likely already be inside cackling with uncontained glee.

“I fear a grave error has been made,” Raquel said sadly, eyes unblinking as they shifted to observe the reunion occurring inside. After a moment, he added a hesitant, “Perhaps – maybe - more than one.”

That was the understatement of their very long, immortal lives. Azrael knew how he felt. She had wallowed in her own measure of guilt over how she’d treated her favorite brother. But that any of her other siblings thought they’d made a mistake, much less admitted it aloud, was a change of heart she never expected to see. Ever.

Inside, Lucifer had an easy, relaxed smile on his face only pinched in resigned discomfort when Trixie pushed herself into his space and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. He patted her head with one hand while the fingers of his other flexed at Chloe’s hip.

And her girl Ella waited in the wings for her turn, bouncing at the child’s heels and just itching to get her arms around her surrogate brother. It was the best decision she’d ever made manipulating events to ensure the two found one another.

“Humans are frail, fallible creatures but they possess an unmatched capacity for a love,” Gabriel surveyed the scene with awe in his voice, “that burns as brilliant as Lucifer’s stars.”

Remiel suddenly joined their little jaunt into celestial voyeurism, wings WOOSHING out of sight as soon as she landed beside her siblings. “I was – perhaps – too - hasty.”

Azrael observed her judgmental siblings closely. Could see their curiosity, and maybe a bit of longing, over how easily Lucifer moved between his human friends. How they smiled and welcomed him into their unlikely, mismatched family unit.

“I find that I – want to learn more,” Gabriel admitted quietly.

“It is true.” Raquel confirmed. As if he was unable to believe it. “Hell no longer requires a warden. Lucifer’s watch is truly over.”

“His punishment, you mean.” Azrael corrected. She would always feel guilty about never visiting him. But that was her guilt to bear.

“Semantics.” Remiel answered dismissively.

“Not to him,” Azrael whispered quietly, eyes focusing on her favorite brother. She couldn’t imagine leading a rebellion against her father, but neither could she fathom being so totally and completely abandoned by her siblings.

“He can come home.” Gabriel breathed, voice tinged with a sliver of hope.

The only time she’d spoken to Lucifer after his Fall she’d told him that the entire family had been rocked after he’d been sent to hell. But that hadn’t been the half of it. The reverberations of his rebellion could be felt to this day in the Silver City. In the unmovable hardness of some of their sibling’s hearts toward him. The unmitigated fury in others. In the unbelievable thawing of some, too.

Azrael smiled warmly as Lucifer settled onto the couch with Chloe, their fingers wrapped together, eyes softer than she’d ever seen them when they landed to his partner. With only a briefly affronted glare, he even patiently answered Ella and Trixie’s dual rapid-fire questions.

“He’s already home.”

Earth was, after all, where her brother’s heart lived.

END

**Author's Note:**

> Liked it? Hated it? Did I miss anything that should be there? Anything completely throw you out of the moment?
> 
> Leave a review and let me know!


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